Zuma flew back after fruitless meetings

Zuma flew back to South Africa Thursday after fruitless meetings wih President Robert Mugabe and his main political rival and prime minister Morgan Tsvangirai failed to put back on the rails Zimbabwe’s increasingly vulnerable power-sharing deal.

The two sides failed to reach a deal after two days of negotiations on Wednesday and Thursday, and the dispute has once again been thrown back to negotiators who are set to hold further discussions on March 25. They will be expected to report back to Zuma on March 31.

The agreement, brokered by regional bloc SADC, has stagnated amid a deadlock over full implementation of the global political agreement, raising fears of a hollow effort in Zuma’s much-touted SADC-mandated mediation meant to end Zimbabwe’s economic and political crises.

The stand-off intensified two weeks ago as Mugabe awarded his Zanu (PF) ministers an elephant’s share of ministerial portfolios to administer while leaving Tsvangirai’s ministers with nothing in a move analysts say was meant to tempt the MDC to pull out of the pact.

The latest dispute heightened tension and prompted the MDC to recall Zuma to return to break the impasse.

But at the end of the mediation Thursday, it was clear Zuma’s chances for successful mediation were much slimmer. Zuma’s vague utterances on an exit press briefing Thursday showed that he has no leverage to pressure Mugabe to loosen his iron-fisted control after nearly 30 years in power.

“The parties have agreed to a package of measures to be implemented concurrently as per the decision of the SADC troika in Maputo,” he told reporters, at a press brifing also attended by Mugabe, Tsvangirai and deputy PM Arthur Mutambara. “I believe that the implementation of this package will take the process forward substantially,” he said, staunchly refusing to disclose where exactly progress had been made.

He claimed that he needed to brief SADC Troika chaiman Armando Guebuzza. But his revelation that negotiators from Mugabe’s Zanu-PF and Tsvangirai’s MDC would meet again on March 25, 26 and 29 to deal with “outstanding matters”, betrayed that his latest mediation had fell through.

Earlier on Wednesday, Zma is said to have secretly met with Reserve Bank governor Gideon Gono and Johannes Tomana, the Attorney General. Sources claim he offered them a “golden handshake.”

They were given up to March 30 to decide whether to take up the offer or not. In return, Zanu (PF) reportedly wants the MDC to call for removal of sanctions.

Zuma also met with deputy Agriculture minister designate, Roy Bennett, whom Mugabe has refused to swear into government.

The remaining disagreements are among the stickiest – over the appointment of provincial governors, the central bank chief and attorney general; charges from Tsvangirai’s party that Mugabe supporters continue to abuse human rights; and charges from Mugabe’s party that Tsvangirai’s group has done too little to persuade the international community to lift the targeted sanctions against Mugabe and his top loyalists.